Disney Yields to Union on Subcontracting Food Work : Labor: But the theme park management says it reserves the right to replace employees with outside companies in the future.
Relenting to union pressure as it enters the final week of contract negotiations, Disneyland has withdrawn its previous plan to subcontract cafeteria-service work.
The Anaheim amusement park’s management pulled back after Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union Local 681 waged a publicity campaign that began during the summer and threatened a boycott, saying the subcontracting would cost its members 100 good-paying jobs to a food vendor bringing its own crew of minimum-wage workers.
Most of the union food-service employees make $9.15 to $11.05 an hour, with some earning as much as $15 an hour.
“It’s a tremendous victory” for the union, said Angela Keefe, president of Santa Ana-based Local 681, which represents more than 700 food-service workers at Disneyland.
The theme park, whose contract with the union expires Sunday, previously denied that it had any firm plans to farm out such work. But in a letter to the union late last week, Disney Vice President David Cox said the company decided against subcontracting “because this issue is not currently ripe for further management consideration and because you seem to believe it is an obstacle to successful conclusion of our current negotiations.”
Cox, who was unavailable for comment Monday, nonetheless maintained in his letter that the company has the right to subcontract out any work and may do so in the future.
Local 681 has contested that right in a complaint filed with the National Labor Relations Board, and the union is now trying to obtain contract language that would prevent Disneyland from making such a move.
But the issue still remains on the table during the contract talks, which began in early September. The two sides are meeting daily this week in lengthy sessions that are scheduled to culminate with union workers voting Sunday on Disneyland’s final offer.
Also unresolved are the company’s proposal for a two-tier wage structure and changes in tip credits and benefits for certain temporary employees, according to a flyer passed out to union members at Disneyland over the weekend. The union said it has reached a tentative agreement with management on overtime, split shifts and seniority rights, among other issues.
Disneyland spokesman John McClintock would not comment Monday about negotiations.
Disneyland, Orange County’s largest private employer, has long employed union workers, and there has not been a major strike at the park in a decade. But subcontracting has recently come between management and some unions at the park, and that has put workers on guard.
Local 681 members are scheduled to vote through the day Sunday at the Grand Hotel, across the street from Disneyland.
Union Talks at Disneyland
The Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union Local 681, which represents 700 food-service workers at Disneyland, is in the final week of contract negotiations with the theme park. Issues in the talks:
TENTATIVELY SETTLED:
* Overtime
* Split shifts
* Seniority rights
* Minimum shifts
STILL ON THE TABLE:
* Two-tier wage structure
* Tip credits
* Benefits for some workers
Source: Hotel and Restaurant Employees union;
Researched by DON LEE / Los Angeles Times
